Buterin urged developers to consider licenses that permit code sharing and require reciprocal transparency for derivative projects.
Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder of Ethereum, has urged the crypto community to transition to “copyleft” licensing, contending that the industry is straying from its open-source origins.
Buterin urged developers to take into account licenses that mandate reciprocal transparency for derivative projects and allow code sharing in a blog post that was published on Monday.
Previously, Buterin supported a more permissive approach, advocating for licenses that allow unrestricted code modification or reuse. However, he has since shifted his stance.
Buterin: Why Crypto Needs Code-Sharing Rules
Enforcement is the primary distinction. Permissive licenses anticipate benevolence, whereas copyleft mandates that contributors disclose their code when they expand upon the work of others.
Buterin wrote, “The crypto space has become increasingly competitive and mercenary.” “We are no longer able to rely on individuals to open-source their work solely out of kindness.”
Buterin regards copyleft as a practical remedy to the incentive issue. With the increasing commercialization of cryptocurrency, voluntary sharing is no longer scalable.
Requiring reciprocity guarantees that public contributions contribute to the broader ecosystem rather than enriching closed-source operators.
He recognized potential hazards, such as situations in which code must be shared despite not having been widely distributed.
However, he argued that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, especially considering the increasing popularity of open source.
Buterin observed that people can perceive copyleft as a neutral and extensive approach to promoting increased diffusion. He also mentioned that the model contributes to the development of a collective codebase that is exclusively accessible to those who contribute.
Adam Cochran, a crypto venture capitalist, expressed his endorsement of Buterin’s stance, stating that the fundamental philosophy is sound, despite the existence of “edge cases where copyleft is problematic.”
At a time when the crypto industry is grappling with the challenges of isolated innovation, proprietary platforms, and increasing centralization, there is a renewed emphasis on copyleft licensing.
Buterin aspires to restore the sector to its original principles of transparency and collaboration by advocating for a more robust open-source framework.
Ethereum Staking Surges Despite Market Slump
Ethereum staking has achieved a new milestone, as reported. The network’s proof-of-stake system now contains over 35 million ETH, which is over 28.3% of the total supply.
In the initial half of June, more than 500,000 ETH was staked. The trend indicates a change in investor behavior, as a significant number of investors are choosing to earn a yield rather than sell at current prices.
Lido, a liquid staking colossus, currently manages over 25% of all staked ETH, while Binance and Coinbase account for 7.5% and 7.4%, respectively.
Coinbase has also become the largest node operator in Ethereum, controlling over 11.4% of staked ETH through its validators.
It is worth noting that Ethereum is currently experiencing its most intense whale accumulation in seven years, as large wallets added over 871,000 ETH in a single day on June 12.
According to Glassnode, this represents the highest daily inflow in 2025 and has increased the total holdings in 1,000 to 10,000 ETH wallets to over 14.3 million ETH.
